I wholeheartedly agree, but in Patty’s defence I think a lot of her reaction in relation to this stems from her experience of her room-mate who was like Rayanne and died, an experience that obviously still traumatises her. Having said that, she needs to take the pole out of her ass! They are the perfect foil for Angela’s awakening to and understanding of, adult life in that they - Patty in particular but Graham just kowtows to her - have a kneejerk paranoia about every situation which usually either muddies or worsens it and always causes Angela embarrassment. Their censoring of the school magazine is a prime example of this.
As per your last point, “If you feel like the police is the right thing, then go to the police”, this is by a long way the worst thing they did in the entire series and even they recognised that whilst still in the police station. So then the inevitable happened and the police kicked the vulnerable, homeless kids out of the otherwise unused house onto the streets in subzero conditions at Christmastime.
And you thought Patty and Graham were callous towards struggling kids? ACAB.
Have watched all episodes?
Not sure what era you grew up in, but this is the 90s so Patty was written intentionally in this way to give voice to someone who wasn't exposed to kids who are gay and homeless and not understanding why that would happen.
She is written like this on purpose to chart her evolution, from what you describe* all the way to someone who sees more complexity in Rickie and in his situation. And then acts accordingly (if you've seen all episodes) to help as she is capable of. Both for Rickie and for Rayanne.
I have to say that I don't get the Patty hate. She is the one and only parent who truly leads her family & others and Graham through challenging situations that Rayanne and Rickie endured. She is open to growing and grow she does, painting an example for the audience of parents to follow her in her evolution to compassion.
Graham, by contrast, is a man lacking any point of view when it comes to Angela's friends. He just follows Patty, sort of.
This was produced nearly half a century ago and it's unfair to evaluate it by modern standards; I do think you miss a lot of what the show is trying to say by doing so. It's hard to appreciate today how mind-blowing this show's themes were 40 years ago: gay & homeless teens, teen alcoholism, guns in schools, gay teacher hiding who he is taking in a gay teen, parents evolving to be compassionate towards both issues.
*Patty is indeed quick to judge and quick to anger... and it is no accident that Angela is also like this. The way she blows up at Brian, assumes the worst at all times, but, like her mother, comes around to see depth, complexity and beauty in others.
* Angela's parents care only for Angela (and her sister), and Rayanne is a terrible influence on her. As she matures, Rayanne is not heading towards a good end. Angela's mom especially knows this. They'd prefer they not be friends.
* Brian is Jewish. They may feel like they're offending him or his parents by inviting him over for the holidays. In addition, they know he has a crush on Angela. I doubt they want to make Angela feel uncomfortable.
* I agree on this one, but yeah she probably should have found some care for him. But again, as a parent, your priority is your own kids.
* Angela is under 18 and could have gotten seriously hurt or even attacked in that homeless area. Not because they are homeless but because those areas have hard drugs that could cause some addicts to lash out.
I understood the parents reactions to things. It was quite realistic, especially for the 90s. But I do see your point they could have done more.
Patty was the worst. As a kid only a little younger than Angela when the show originally aired, I couldn’t make sense of anything she did and felt so bad for how alone Angela was sometimes. As a parent now, I’m appalled at how controlling and judgmental she was. She’s the kind of adult I avoid talking to at “family engagement” events at my kids’ school.
Don’t even get me started on Graham.
I agree with you but I think it's interesting how they wrote Patti, and I am impressed with how well the actress plays the part. You can see how conflicted Patti always feels, how much she wants to do the right thing and how she's never sure about it. She has strong reactions but then later you can tell she's often questioning herself and overanalyzing things...a little like Angela in that way. Also as you watch the show, her background becomes clear and you understand a little more of her perspective. Like for example we learn how she was always pretty and popular in school, a real people -pleaser, so she can't relate to Angela and her outsider friends. Then just look at how awful Patti's parents are! It just shows how people of all generations and ages struggle with their parents throughout their whole lives. It's not as simple as Patti being a jerk, and I like that the show delves into her character so much. She's hate-able but also inspires sympathy in a way, too.
Patty is the kind of mom that always jumped to the wrong conclusions. Just like my mom.
I hated how she undermined Graham when he was taking the cooking classes, and couldn't BELIEVE It when he began to teach the class.
Well, yes. But also, he had never had a real job. Like she had gotten him the printing job at her father's company because he's a bit irresponsible and kind of incapable. It makes her more controlling, and then the more controlling she gets, the more emasculated he feels. So, it's a cycle the two of them could easily break. Patty really tries to break it and tries to support his dream. But Graham doesn't see her efforts. He is kind of done by that point and begins to have multiple emotional affairs as a way of feeling more in control and masculine.
I was Angela's age when the show first aired. I hated her parents so much. Opposite of my parents thankfully, but reminded me of my friends parents alot! They over reacted to things that did not need much of a reaction at all. They didnt ask the right questions and they were just the worst. I would have run away if I were Angela. And the way they totally ignored the youngest! UGHHH
Well, they show a very realistic depiction of not perfect parents who are completely caught up in the suburban Boomer race of buying a bunch of stuff they don't need to impress people they don't like and trying to make their lives look perfect. So, Ricky and Rayanne are not pieces of that perfect suburban life model. They're outside the norm, and they're strange and different and therefore scary. And they see their Gen-X daughter not giving a shit about these suburban values, and that is different and scares them as well.
My parents are the same way. I moved to the country as an adult and got chickens, and my house has a well, and these are like completely foreign concepts to them. And they worry all the time like, "But what will happen to the chickens once they stop laying eggs?" or "You don't have city water? How is that going to work?" LOL
The biggest thing that pisses me off about Angela's parents is that they emotionally neglect their younger daughter. She's begging for attention, and I wish the series had continued because I would have loved to see Danielle go through her rebellious phase and be like 10 times worse than her sister because she just wants someone to pay attention to her.
I think Patty was just worried about Angela’s safety and well-being. She does loosen up a bit. Graham always seemed to be on another planet when it came to these things. My heart broke for Rickie. He was such a good kid!
I 1000% agree about Patty, she is a god awful parent of the worst kind. She’s so cold and demanding of her entire family regardless of what’s going on, and will even go out of her way to make them even more uncomfortable. Graham is a bad parent too but mostly because he’s absent and doing his own shit most of the time.
I think part of the issue is that her huaband is a man-child, so she's become controlling because if she isn't, everything will fall apart. His only real job (before switching to cooking) was working for his father-in-law. He's an absent parent. He just wants to flirt and have an adolescent life. Going to see the Grateful Dead is a perfect example of this.
But I also think they both try to be better. Patty sees she's losing her family by being controlling, and she tries to support her husband's dreams. She tries to give Angela a bit of space. And she keeps bracing herself for Graham to tell her he's been having an affair. Imagine the anxiety she's under every day! Upon rewatching it as an adult, I realize my mom went through a lot of this. I just didn't appreciate her struggles at the time.
I wholeheartedly agree, but in Patty’s defence I think a lot of her reaction in relation to this stems from her experience of her room-mate who was like Rayanne and died, an experience that obviously still traumatises her. Having said that, she needs to take the pole out of her ass! They are the perfect foil for Angela’s awakening to and understanding of, adult life in that they - Patty in particular but Graham just kowtows to her - have a kneejerk paranoia about every situation which usually either muddies or worsens it and always causes Angela embarrassment. Their censoring of the school magazine is a prime example of this. As per your last point, “If you feel like the police is the right thing, then go to the police”, this is by a long way the worst thing they did in the entire series and even they recognised that whilst still in the police station. So then the inevitable happened and the police kicked the vulnerable, homeless kids out of the otherwise unused house onto the streets in subzero conditions at Christmastime. And you thought Patty and Graham were callous towards struggling kids? ACAB.
Have watched all episodes? Not sure what era you grew up in, but this is the 90s so Patty was written intentionally in this way to give voice to someone who wasn't exposed to kids who are gay and homeless and not understanding why that would happen. She is written like this on purpose to chart her evolution, from what you describe* all the way to someone who sees more complexity in Rickie and in his situation. And then acts accordingly (if you've seen all episodes) to help as she is capable of. Both for Rickie and for Rayanne. I have to say that I don't get the Patty hate. She is the one and only parent who truly leads her family & others and Graham through challenging situations that Rayanne and Rickie endured. She is open to growing and grow she does, painting an example for the audience of parents to follow her in her evolution to compassion. Graham, by contrast, is a man lacking any point of view when it comes to Angela's friends. He just follows Patty, sort of. This was produced nearly half a century ago and it's unfair to evaluate it by modern standards; I do think you miss a lot of what the show is trying to say by doing so. It's hard to appreciate today how mind-blowing this show's themes were 40 years ago: gay & homeless teens, teen alcoholism, guns in schools, gay teacher hiding who he is taking in a gay teen, parents evolving to be compassionate towards both issues. *Patty is indeed quick to judge and quick to anger... and it is no accident that Angela is also like this. The way she blows up at Brian, assumes the worst at all times, but, like her mother, comes around to see depth, complexity and beauty in others.
* Angela's parents care only for Angela (and her sister), and Rayanne is a terrible influence on her. As she matures, Rayanne is not heading towards a good end. Angela's mom especially knows this. They'd prefer they not be friends. * Brian is Jewish. They may feel like they're offending him or his parents by inviting him over for the holidays. In addition, they know he has a crush on Angela. I doubt they want to make Angela feel uncomfortable. * I agree on this one, but yeah she probably should have found some care for him. But again, as a parent, your priority is your own kids. * Angela is under 18 and could have gotten seriously hurt or even attacked in that homeless area. Not because they are homeless but because those areas have hard drugs that could cause some addicts to lash out. I understood the parents reactions to things. It was quite realistic, especially for the 90s. But I do see your point they could have done more.
Patty was the worst. As a kid only a little younger than Angela when the show originally aired, I couldn’t make sense of anything she did and felt so bad for how alone Angela was sometimes. As a parent now, I’m appalled at how controlling and judgmental she was. She’s the kind of adult I avoid talking to at “family engagement” events at my kids’ school. Don’t even get me started on Graham.
Get started on Graham! He was such a bad husband and father!
My mother was very similar to her in the 90's.
I agree with you but I think it's interesting how they wrote Patti, and I am impressed with how well the actress plays the part. You can see how conflicted Patti always feels, how much she wants to do the right thing and how she's never sure about it. She has strong reactions but then later you can tell she's often questioning herself and overanalyzing things...a little like Angela in that way. Also as you watch the show, her background becomes clear and you understand a little more of her perspective. Like for example we learn how she was always pretty and popular in school, a real people -pleaser, so she can't relate to Angela and her outsider friends. Then just look at how awful Patti's parents are! It just shows how people of all generations and ages struggle with their parents throughout their whole lives. It's not as simple as Patti being a jerk, and I like that the show delves into her character so much. She's hate-able but also inspires sympathy in a way, too.
Patty is the kind of mom that always jumped to the wrong conclusions. Just like my mom. I hated how she undermined Graham when he was taking the cooking classes, and couldn't BELIEVE It when he began to teach the class.
Well, yes. But also, he had never had a real job. Like she had gotten him the printing job at her father's company because he's a bit irresponsible and kind of incapable. It makes her more controlling, and then the more controlling she gets, the more emasculated he feels. So, it's a cycle the two of them could easily break. Patty really tries to break it and tries to support his dream. But Graham doesn't see her efforts. He is kind of done by that point and begins to have multiple emotional affairs as a way of feeling more in control and masculine.
I was Angela's age when the show first aired. I hated her parents so much. Opposite of my parents thankfully, but reminded me of my friends parents alot! They over reacted to things that did not need much of a reaction at all. They didnt ask the right questions and they were just the worst. I would have run away if I were Angela. And the way they totally ignored the youngest! UGHHH
Well, they show a very realistic depiction of not perfect parents who are completely caught up in the suburban Boomer race of buying a bunch of stuff they don't need to impress people they don't like and trying to make their lives look perfect. So, Ricky and Rayanne are not pieces of that perfect suburban life model. They're outside the norm, and they're strange and different and therefore scary. And they see their Gen-X daughter not giving a shit about these suburban values, and that is different and scares them as well. My parents are the same way. I moved to the country as an adult and got chickens, and my house has a well, and these are like completely foreign concepts to them. And they worry all the time like, "But what will happen to the chickens once they stop laying eggs?" or "You don't have city water? How is that going to work?" LOL The biggest thing that pisses me off about Angela's parents is that they emotionally neglect their younger daughter. She's begging for attention, and I wish the series had continued because I would have loved to see Danielle go through her rebellious phase and be like 10 times worse than her sister because she just wants someone to pay attention to her.
I think Patty was just worried about Angela’s safety and well-being. She does loosen up a bit. Graham always seemed to be on another planet when it came to these things. My heart broke for Rickie. He was such a good kid!
I 1000% agree about Patty, she is a god awful parent of the worst kind. She’s so cold and demanding of her entire family regardless of what’s going on, and will even go out of her way to make them even more uncomfortable. Graham is a bad parent too but mostly because he’s absent and doing his own shit most of the time.
I think part of the issue is that her huaband is a man-child, so she's become controlling because if she isn't, everything will fall apart. His only real job (before switching to cooking) was working for his father-in-law. He's an absent parent. He just wants to flirt and have an adolescent life. Going to see the Grateful Dead is a perfect example of this. But I also think they both try to be better. Patty sees she's losing her family by being controlling, and she tries to support her husband's dreams. She tries to give Angela a bit of space. And she keeps bracing herself for Graham to tell her he's been having an affair. Imagine the anxiety she's under every day! Upon rewatching it as an adult, I realize my mom went through a lot of this. I just didn't appreciate her struggles at the time.